A large study of almost 38,000 adults and published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)shows that parenting can keep the brain in surprisingly good shape.
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As the number of children grows, the activity between brain areas involved in understanding the intentions, emotions and needs of others becomes better synchronized. These connections tend to weaken with age, but parenthood, with its ongoing challenges, seems to keep them active. The effect occurs in both women and men, suggesting that parenting, not pregnancy, is responsible for these changes.
The paper analyzed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data of almost 20,000 women and 18,000 men, all taken from the UK Biobank database, which tracks the health of the UK population.
Researchers have observed that as the number of children raised by a parent increases, so does the synchronization of activity in certain brain networks, particularly the somatomotor network, which helps us interpret the behaviors of others and understand what they need. It is a fundamental network for caring, empathy and social interaction.
Normally, the coordination of these regions declines with age. The fact that parents show better synchronized activity suggests that responsibilities, continuous adaptation, learning and exposure to unpredictable situations could work as long-term training for the brain.
“It's not a pregnancy effect. It's a parenting effect”
Edwina Orchard, a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, explains: “It's very similar in women and men, so we're not talking about a pregnancy effect; it's a parenting effect.”
Past research has focused primarily on changes in women's brains during pregnancy. However, Orchard's team wanted to overcome this limitation and see what happens in the brains of parents regardless of gender when the common factor is the experience of raising children.
Orchard explains that parenting creates a highly complex and unpredictable environment, and this complexity appears to protect neural networks. Parenting forces you to learn new things, interpret emotions, anticipate needs, manage conflicts, and continually adapt. It is precisely these processes (variety, novelty, and cognitive challenge) that neuroscience says keep the brain active and slow the decline that naturally occurs with age.
“Raising children is just one of the ways to introduce complexity and novelty into life”adds Orchard, adding that a demanding job, continuing education or learning a foreign language can stimulate the brain in a similar way. For childless adults, the bottom line is that other forms of cognitive engagement can produce this kind of mental training.
Experts point out, however, that the study cannot prove a direct causal relationship. The observed differences can be influenced by factors such as social norms, the economic context or the individual characteristics of those who choose – or end up – having a certain number of children. Even so, the results change the narrative about the supposed “negative effects” of parenting on the brain.
“There's a social discourse about parenting being bad for the brain, this baby brain idea,” Orchard says. “But the cognitive challenges of parenting, sustained over a lifetime, can lead to a more resilient brain.”
“Neuroscience basically confirms what parents experience every day: the relationship with your child is an ongoing form of emotional and cognitive training. As a mother, I can honestly say that no parenting textbook prepares you for the pace at which a child's emotions, needs and questions challenge you to be present, creative and flexible. It can be exhausting – and it is – but the study shows that this very dynamic keeps the brain active, connected and young.” explains for “Adevărul” Ileana Ungureanu, clinical psychologist and integrative psychotherapist.
A child invites you daily to empathy, interpretation of intentions and emotional regulation. “It takes you through unpredictable situations, requires you to anticipate, learn, and constantly adapt. And these processes activate the networks involved in understanding others, planning, and mental flexibility—the very areas that tend to stiffen with age. Basically, a child forces you not to stay on autopilot. In other words, when you're a parent, your brain doesn't get to settle into a routine: it's challenged, nudged, and kept moving“, she adds.
In his view, the most important part of the study is that it shows that the real benefit comes not from biology, but from role. “This kind of 'social brain training' is not unique to parenting. Neuroplasticity responds to accountability, deep human connection, authentic engagement. In other words, any activity that requires empathy, adaptability and relational learning has similar effects: mentoring, volunteering, working with people, caring for a loved one, caring for animals, teaching, even creative activities in the community. What actually protects the brain is meaningful interaction — not parenthood.” completes the specialist.
More specifically, the brain stays young when it stays connected. “Parenting is only one possible path – perhaps the most intense – but not the only one. Meaningful relationships, mindful presence, and emotional engagement are what keep what is deeply human in us alive and flexible.”concludes Ileana Ungureanu.
Therefore, parenting, with all the challenges it brings, can work as a long-term brain workout. And for those without children, the direction is just as clear. Exposure to new situations, continuous learning and intense intellectual activity are valid alternatives to keep the brain young and adaptable.
